Liability
by heartrush
Summary: Kagome's entire life is her boyfriend Inuyasha, but everything is about to become a lot more complicated. An innocent shift at a grocery store leads to two dead bodies and some blood on her hands. What's a girl to do? Based on the film American Ultra.


She did it, _again_.

Kagome was lying in bed beside her boyfriend, Inuyasha. She was under his arm and his face was pressed into her neck as he caressed her stomach absentmindedly, rustling her tanktop. Even though he didn't show any sign of discontent, she felt dread envelop her, as it always had.

"It's always warm here," he whispered into her nape, leaning in closer.

"I'm sorry," she spoke, her voice cracking. Her hand stilled, stopping his ministrations on her stomach.

In response, he grabbed her waist and pulled her in tight. "Kagome, I said it's fine. We didn't have to go anywhere, we can stay at home." His tone didn't leave any room for argument, but she pushed anyway, as she always had.

"But we planned it for months, we paid the money, you saved so much and—you love Hokkaido." her hands were fists, wishing to express the gravity of her crime. It felt like a crime, to bring his hopes up and crush them in the eleventh hour.

"I wanted to go with you, I really did, but the plane…" They tried a plane this time because last time she couldn't get on a train. She didn't even show up when they were supposed to meet. She stayed home and just _sat there_ with her phone's blaring ringtone to keep her company. It felt like if she left the house she'd explode. Inuyasha came home that day, worn from worry. His face had looked so relieved when he saw her. He just told her he was at the platform for three hours, and that she should have called.

This time she at least made it inside the airport.

"If I gave a shit, I would have went by myself. But I'd rather be with you, Kagome. Don't sweat it." She squeezed him tightly. Even though Kagome felt that Inuyasha was better off without her and all of her anxiety, she wouldn't be able to bear him leaving. It was unfathomable.

"I love you," she mumbled into his shoulder, crushing her face against his torso as she let out a few tears.

"Shhh," he kissed her head, her ear. His hand slid down her back in a soothing motion. "Please don't cry."

"I'm holding you back," she whimpered pathetically.

"Not at all."

"Yes I am," she insisted.

He released her from his arms and he crawled over her. They locked eyes, his grey ones piercing hers. She knew her face was a little red, her eyes wet and slightly puffy. His black hair poured over them and framed his handsome face. She sniffled and blinked, leaving his gaze because she couldn't bear it any longer.

"Come here, Kagome," he beckoned, kissing her exposed neck and jawline, biting her ear. "Look at me."

She swallowed audibly, biting her lip.

"Please," his voice had grown deeper. She gave in. Inuyasha simply brushed his nose against hers before he kissed her bitten lips.

Kagome had the passing thought that if she didn't have a hold of him this way he might disappear. She pressed her lips against his insistently, opening up his mouth to slip her tongue inside. He responded, sucking her lower lip into his mouth, grazing it against his teeth, which always felt sharper than anyone else's.

Her arms wrapped around his neck, keeping him close, anchoring his body against hers. _I don't want you to leave_, she selfishly wanted to tell him.

"I love you, too," he finally reciprocated, although she never felt unsure. Not with his kisses traveling down her body, his mouth capturing her hard nipple through her shirt. He sucked, the ribbed fabric grating against her sensitive skin and sending a signal to the rest of her body to light up underneath him.

Inuyasha's left hand skimmed her hip, massaging it and dipping his fingers beneath the waistband of her panties. Kagome pressed her thighs together in a futile attempt to quell the ache that flared inside her. He released her nipple and glanced at her. She took note of the new wet, dark spot on her grey top.

Kagome knew the course he planned to take with his fingers. They slipped against the wet seam of her sex, parting her labia and dipping into her pussy. Her legs opened instinctively to give him the room he needed to push two inside. Kagome moaned as he pressed them inside of her as far as he could go.

Inuyasha's lips moved to hers and he kissed her passionately, tongue skimming the edges of her teeth and brushing the roof of her mouth. Her moans became muffled and she bucked against his insistent hand. He moved away from her and she was about to complain, but his mouth went back to her tender nipple. He bit down and she moaned, her walls instinctively tightening around his fingers.

"You'll pull them off," his words were teasing but the sound of his voice told truth of his awe. His lips were still against her chest, but she became frustrated about the shirt between them.

"C-can't help it," she fidgeted impatiently and brought a hand to the neck of her tank top and pulled it down; it gave way without trouble.

Her nipple felt cold once it was exposed to the air, the remnants of Inuyasha's saliva assisting her sensitivity.

"Good," he praised before he tongued the bud, the warm wetness of his mouth sending a soothing sensation that went straight to her groin and made her wetter. His fingers were working her over all the while, and Kagome absently wondered if this is what paradise was like. Her entire body was on fire and she couldn't even discern what she was looking at any longer because sparks were shooting in her brain.

He had been pressing his fingers against her walls as he pumped them inside her. He was teasing her, even going so far to briefly spread them and crook them forward after. She writhed as he moved to suckle her neck.

His thumb reached up to nudge her clitoris, and Kagome nearly jumped as the shock traveled through her. He rubbed back and forth and kept his two fingers stationary inside her, her juices dripping down onto the sheets beneath her. Once he moved his thumb in circles, she was done for.

"Mmmmm, ah-" she gasped, twitching slightly, "I-I-Inuyasha, I-_coming_-!"

"Go," he implored, lapping at the new bruise on her neck.

So she did.

Kagome still wasn't comfortable with what happened a week ago. Sure, Inuyasha reassured her so much he gave her an orgasm, but she still felt like she cheated him.

She was sweeping inside the grocery shop she worked at. It was a late shift, Kaede asked her to close up for her. Kagome loved the old woman, she felt like family, but she can't remember being hired by Kaede. She can't even recall graduating high school. Was her family there to see? She'd never know. They were most certainly dead, anyway. The need to question these things gave Kagome severe migraines, the kind that force you to lay down and sleep for hours in order to stop the earth from spinning. They were terrible, they happened often. She's curious by nature.

It had been getting late, the streets were completely empty as the sky quickly grew dark. Inuyasha's commute back home from the office passed the store, so he always picked her up. They grabbed loads of snacks each time before they left. It was ideal, really.

_I still screw him over a lot_, she thought bitterly, but shook her head to calm herself. _I love him and he loves me, _she reminded herself. If he told her something didn't matter, then she should trust that it didn't.

Finished with her tidying, Kagome simply went to the register and waited for possible clientele.

Right before Kagome began to count the tiles on her ceiling (there were about 90 of them when she counted last), the door jingled, signaling her to stop her shenanigans.

In walked a gorgeous woman. She was stately, tall, in office attire that contoured to her curves. Her hair was pin straight and neatly gathered in a low ponytail. Sunglasses hid her eyes. Her gait was unhurried as she grabbed a bag of chips and sauntered over to Kagome. This lady's demeanor and attire made Kagome painfully aware of her own lackluster outfit, a simple shirt and jeans and her hair left to fend for itself. She was late to work this morning.

Kagome couldn't clearly see this woman's expression, but she had the overwhelming impression that she must look bored all the time, and it wasn't her fault. It's because she looked like a statue.

She smiled at her customer. "Would you like anything else?"

"Kagome Higurashi." Her voice was clearly as elegant as her appearance, monotone and pleasant in Kagome's ears.

What? Her last name was Yukino.

"Is that a brand? Because I think I might have something, I just have to check. Give me a moment to-"

The woman's hand came up, stopping Kagome's blabber.

"The cage has been unlatched," she articulated slowly.

What?

"Let the bird flee the nest." The words were clear, accompanied by some cheerful music played on the store's speakers. They were caught in a staring contest, except Kagome was at a severe disadvantage since she was staring at a pair of glossy and pristine sunglasses. In a few minutes, she had to break the silence.

"Are you an animal rights activist in very expensive clothing?" She stopped looking at the women at this point because she was so unnerved. Behind her was a tipped picture frame, Kaede's first ¥5000 profit from the store. Kagome wanted to fix it so badly.

The woman grunted, a very unladylike sound coming from such a graceful looking woman. She took off her sunglasses, heaving a sigh. The frames clicked against her counter.

"Agent Higurashi. The cage has been unlatched."

"Let the bird flee the nest, I assume?" Kagome said waveringly, shrugging her shoulders.

The woman's serious expression faltered and she pressed her lips together in a line, clearly worried. This reaction made her stomach swoop in nervousness.

"Nothing?" She said softly.

"I'm uh, sorry. I'm not sure I've seen that film."

The woman's hand moved on the counter and rested over her own. She startled. The touch was warm, gentle, even familiar.

"I'm sorry, Kagome. I tried my hardest to protect you. I love you."

Her warmth left Kagome's hand as she strolled away, almost despondent. She focused on her hand, confused, the limb looking like an alien part of her body in the way that repeating a word so many times its meaning turns into nothing.

Her and Inuyasha did that once, repeating words that held a power over them and turning them into abstraction. He said words like "weak," she said words like "burden." Dynamite they made.

Kagome fought the urge to ask if the woman still wanted those chips as she left through the door. It seemed crude to ruin an emotional moment she had no instrumental part of.

It wasn't the weirdest experience in Kagome's life as a cashier. Plenty of people have come into the store saying unusual things at night. Right?

No random patron had ever told her she loved her.

Well, it was time to close up anyway.

Kagome locked the register, grabbed her favorite ice cream and found Inuyasha's favorite ramen flavor. She flicked off the lights and walked over to close the door before she saw men tampering with the structure.

She gasped in confusion, and then they looked up and glared.

They shoved the glass door open before Kagome could reach it. "Hey, Miss. You Kagome Higurashi?"

Again with Higurashi? She didn't know that name!

"No, I'm not, I'm Kagome Yukino, and I'd like you to leave."

She stepped back behind the counter, not bothering to turn on the lights. She dropped the snacks on the counter. The men were well illuminated in blue courtesy of the drink machines lining the wall.

One man slammed his hands on the counter. His hair was disheveled, black. "You'll do just fine anyway…"

Kagome's hand secretly grasped at the bat she kept hidden. She leaned down to hold the handle, afraid she'll have to use it.

"I wanted to practice before I got the proper target anyway."

She resisted to call out for Inuyasha, he obviously wasn't around. _Who are these people? _Her mind screamed. _How could he say he wanted to practice harming someone? _

Even so, she wasn't going to take this lying down. Her hand squeezed the bat's handle.

"Suikotsu," his partner bemoaned. The man had catlike eyes and no brows, his bald head covered with a tightly wrapped cloth. "I'm tired of you dragging this out. Just kill her."

Her blood rushed to her ears and caused a sinking feeling in her stomach.

"Okay, Renkotsu. Don't fucking act like this isn't fun."

_Fun!_

"C'mere!" His hand, positioned like a claw, reached out for her neck.

The next moment, Kagome didn't even think. She swung the bat cleanly, catching the man in the temple and sending him down. Her victim yelled in pain, dropping to the ground.

"Suikotsu!" He was slumped on the ground, motionless and unaware of the world. She looked at her other enemy.

Renkotsu wasn't happy. He snarled at her, running to grab a hold of her. She actually hurt a person, he might even be dead, she even saw his skull split open!

"You bitch!" He flanked her side and she evaded him by jumping over the counter.

She ran into a corner and swung the bat in front of her to deter him from getting closer.

Renkotsu dislodged it from her grip, punching the tip of it into her stomach and placing pressure.

"Ugh," she grimaced, glaring at him. He shoved the bat forward into her abdomen, pressing it into the nook between all of her ribs. Kagome whimpered and squirmed, pushing it downward and away from such a vulnerable spot on her body. Renkotsu merely dropped the bat, its haphazard fall clanking on the floor and rolling. He stepped closer to her and cocked his gun, the clicking noise causing her gut to clench in fear.

"You just got lucky. You think I'd let you surprise us twice?"

He raised his other hand, the barrel of a gun staring at her. A course of action came to her almost immediately.

Kagome reached up and grabbed the gun's handle from the man, twisting it out of his grip and snapping his wrist back to fracture it. He screamed and jumped backward, foot landing on the bat, causing him to fall back with a hard thump. There was a hiss of pain.

Renkotsu cowered, looking up at Kagome briefly before she took the handgun and shot him in the throat.

She dropped the gun immediately and left it at her feet.

Her hands shook violently as she took in the body in front of her. She was a killer now. How did she even know how to pull a weapon from another person's grip so quickly? How did she aim perfectly?

"Ugh…" the other man groaned from afar, and she felt a chill down her spine. Tentatively, she still reached for the gun anyway, peeking over the shelves to see the man rise to a sitting position.

"I don't want to hurt you too...Suikotsu." she called out on her tiptoes. She needed to get a good view of him and the rows of snacks were a bit tall.

"You killed Renkotsu?" He didn't even care. "He was annoying me lately."

His entire forehead was covered in blood. She could only see his mouth. The man looked at her and gave her a feral grin, smeared blood on his yellowing teeth.

Suikotsu used the counter to lean against as he slid himself up to stand. His head lolled to one side. He raised a finger languidly, to point at her.

"At least now we both have experience."

Kagome swallowed.

He began to fiddle with his waistband in front of her, grasping yet another gun. He didn't even have time to aim it. She thoughtlessly shot him in the eye socket, the quick reaction tugged out from deep inside of her-the back of her brain that she never knew existed. His body dropped gracelessly this time; teetering head knocking against the protruding counter and trailing blood as he went down.

"Oh my goodness," she flung the gun at the body, trying to get it away from her as soon as possible.

Kagome couldn't stop it. She vomited right on the spot.

"Ugh," she said to nothing. She stared at the vomit in a daze, trying to comprehend what had just happened. It didn't feel like she had just shot two men down at all. In fact, their lives were weightless on her conscience.

She thinks she's in shock. She _should_ be in shock. Tearing her gaze away from her upchuck, Kagome forced herself to stare at Suikotsu. She looked at his face, where his browbone started to swell in response to the blow she gave to his head. The blood was still dripping into the gaping socket where his eye used to be.

This man's face used to be whole. Renkotsu's throat used to be functional.

What is she going to do? Kagome looked up at the camera in the corner of her store, staring at it for at least a minute. Everything is on tape. And then it came to her.

She ran to a phone on the wall, dialing Inuyasha's number immediately.

She begged for him to answer, and he picked up on the second ring.

"Inuyasha."

"Hi baby, what's up?" His voice was edging on the side of whimsical. Kagome could almost hear his smile and she thought she might vomit again.

"Hi. Um. I just...these men attacked me...and I killed them."

"What? Are you fucking with me?" Not so whimsical anymore.

"They were trying to kill me and I don't really know why-" Words spilled out unbidden and her fear began to show in vivid colors.

He was quiet momentarily. He exhaled.

"Slow down. Tell me what happened."

"They asked me if I was some girl named Kagome Higurashi. I told them no, and then they tried to kill me anyway. I used that bat you gave me," she stuttered, "I hit one guy and it was either I get the gun or...oh gods, Inuyasha." She was crying, finally. Her midsection ached with each hiccup and sob and at this point she held on to some hope that she was dreaming.

"Kagome." It seemed like it wasn't the first time he said her name in that moment; he had been trying to get her attention for a while. She _is _far gone.

She sniffled. Inuyasha spoke slowly.

"We'll figure this out. I promise. I'm already out of the station. Don't go anywhere."

Once she hung up the phone, she went and grabbed a couple bottles of water from the fridge. She chugged one, trying to cleanse her palate. She rinsed her grimy hands and splashed some water on her shoes, too. After, Kagome immediately walked out of the store and locked the door behind her. She sat down in front of the entrance, like a guard. She drew her knees to her chest and smushed her face in the crevice.

It could have been five minutes, but it felt like a whole hour before Inuyasha's footsteps approached her. She looked up and found his hand held out to help her stand. The other water bottle she grabbed tumbled from beside her, rolling away on the sidewalk. She paid no mind to it and neither did Inuyasha.

"Kagome."

She took his hand, the warmth traveling through her palm and comforting her almost immediately. If they could just walk home now…

There would still be two dead bodies in her grocery store.

Kagome shook her head vigorously, tears streaming down her face again at full force. "Oh, Inuyasha..."

"You were defending yourself, right?" His hands cradled her shoulders, steadfast. She nodded at that, her lip trembling.

"Then I don't feel sorry for those assholes. Not for one second." He swiftly pulled her into a hug. "I don't know what I'd do if you died."

"I almost rather I did," she mumbled against his suit jacket.

"Kagome…" he began.

"No!" She ripped away from his grip. "I'm a murderer! Those men must have had families!"

"Shhh," Inuyasha rubbed her bicep. "People will hear."

Kagome started to hyperventilate. Her entire body felt like it was going into overdrive as her heart beat at an unhealthy pace and the adrenaline pushed against her veins, begging for her to just _do something already._

"Fuck. Okay, okay, okay, come here-" He tried to bring her into his arms again but she wouldn't budge. She paced at the storefront, taking fleeting looks to see silhouettes of the dead bodies against the moonlight.

"We need to make sure we go to the police _first_, Kagome. I don't think they'd hear us out if they found us here." Inuyasha attempted to be stern, and she realized he was trying to calm her down by remaining calm himself. She could only cry out to him.

"Do you not care about this? People! Dead!" She waved her arms in the air.

"I care about you more!" He yelled back.

"Oh, gods…" she whimpered at that. She didn't deserve it. Not after she shot Suikotsu in the eye. No, when she shot Renkotsu in the throat… She never deserved his love. Especially not now.

Kagome pressed her face into her open palms, mouth gasping open against the heels of her hands. She dragged them down her body, pushing her fingers into the place on her torso where the bat dug into her flesh. It was definitely bruising, but she thought that maybe she should feel the pain. Remember it. Etch it into her dreams.

She looked at him and saw his thought process. He had nothing to do to convince her of her innocence. So he took off his jacket and offered it to her. She took it readily, selfishly taking this small form of comfort from him even though she knew she was a killer. Kagome put it on, buttoning it and enjoying the soothing feeling of her arms swimming in his sleeves.

"Please, Kagome," he whispered imploringly.

She hugged herself. "Alright."

He was visibly relieved. "Okay."

Inuyasha then went digging in his pocket for his cellphone before they heard a yell, "Hey! You two!"

Both looked for the voice at the same time.

"We just got a disturbance call. Someone heard gunshots. S'that you're doing?" It was the police. One man stayed by the car.

"Um-" Kagome's eyes followed the man as she struggled to speak. He walked behind them and looked at her darkened storefront. He lit his flashlight.

"No-!" The light turned on and immediately reflected the damage that was wrought by Kagome. He stopped and surveyed the evidence with a furrowed brow before gesturing towards Inuyasha.

"You, boy, you're coming with me." The policeman readied handcuffs. Inuyasha had remained silent. Why was he being quiet? It took her a second to realize, which was enough time for the man to secure the cuffs. Inuyasha was trying to take the blame for her! She wasn't going to let it happen.

"It was me!" Kagome yelped as Inuyasha was led to the car.

"Kagome! Stop!" Inuyasha yelled at her. "Let me take care of this!"

The cop's eyes narrowed and he scrutinized Kagome's frantic demeanor. "I'll book you both. Ya happy?"

Within moments, Kagome was in handcuffs and sitting beside Inuyasha in a police car. He was furious at her for telling them the truth, so much so that he refused to look at her face. But what else could she have done? She couldn't let him get taken away.

So she was mad back. In protest, she sat huddled against the car door as much as humanly possible. Her head leaned against the window and she watched the city move in front of her eyes as the officers drove them to the precinct. Evidently, killing two men, vomiting, and having a near-panic attack wore her out something fierce. Kagome's eyes were glazing over, and she fought against the instinct to close them. She was very afraid that if she closed her eyes the first thing she'd see was Suikotsu and Renkotsu's bodies.

Her eyes welled up with tears. Will she ever sleep again?

It took less than a half hour before other officers were around and surveying the scene, allowing their captors to drive her and Inuyasha to the precinct.

She risked a glance at Inuyasha. He was already looking at her. She moved closer to him and held out her hand and he took it without protest. The ominousness of the car ride discouraged any further pride from the both of them.

The officer driving them turned and parked in a space in front of the precinct. Both of the men exited the car, speaking to one another over the hood.

"The girl seems a little off. We need to get as much out of her as soon as possible."

Kagome jolted, squeezing Inuyasha's hand in her own. In response, Inuyasha kissed the top of her head.

"It's going to be okay. I'll never let anything happen to you."

She gripped his hand tighter out of desperation, but then swallowed her fear and released him. The car door opened and the policeman gestured at her. "C'mon, girl."

Kagome exited the car.

The officer that took her from the car looked at her wearily. The pity was clear in his expression, and so she decided to stare at the concrete as they walked to the station. Her eyes gleaned over to look at her fists. Her knuckles were pressed together because of the handcuffs. The rim of Inuyasha's suit jacket skimmed over her wrists and hid the gleaming metal from sight. Unintentional, but Kagome felt protected by it nonetheless.

The tips of her shoes bumped against a raised step and she jostled. She groaned at her absent mind and noted the policeman's steadying hand between her shoulders. "Watch out, kid."

She met his eyes and she finally noted what this man looked like. He was old, probably balding, a little bug-eyed. Kagome looked at his arm that was around her back and he put his hand down.

"Call me Totosai. We just need information from you before we could decide anything about this mess." His demeanor seemed oddly grandfather-like, for a man that'd be participating in her inevitable downfall.

"Okay," she nodded. She'll tell them everything.

They walked past the stupid step that made her fall and entered the station. The unforgiving institutional lighting hit her eyes and Kagome blinked blearily as if she hadn't seen light in years.

"In there," Totosai directed her to a door that said "INTERROGATION ROOM" across it. She moved to go in, and Inuyasha called after her.

"Kagome!" She looked over her shoulder and gave him a silencing glare. Inuyasha's face dropped it's determination and he looked well-scolded. If she wanted to tell them every gritty detail, she would. And he'd never be able to stop her.

Behind Inuyasha was another elderly looking officer. Did they just let all the young guys go at night?

"Bokuseno, I'm gonna talk to her myself. We'll brief Hosenki later." Totosai approached the interrogation room and he opened the door for her and she walked in.

"No matter to me," the other man, Bokuseno, shrugged. He turned to Inuyasha, "I'll just wait here with my best friend."

His tone was condescending, obviously trying to goad Inuyasha. Instead of speaking, Kagome saw the line of his jaw clench tightly in reaction and his nails dig into his palms. She just _knew_ he wanted to be in the room with her so he could weasel his way into taking the blame. But that was only a possibility if he behaved.

The door closed behind her and she stared at the bland box of a room she was going to be questioned in. It was cliche; plain the metal table, the worn steel chair she was supposed to sit in had off white paint chipped on its edges. Totosai opened her cuffs.

"Have a seat." Overhead of the table was a wiggling lamp, threatening to fall. Kagome sat. Totosai decided not to. He began to roll up his sleeves in front of her while he spoke, not really looking her in the eye.

"Tell me the story."

Even though she had planned on confessing, her vocal chords had other ideas. Her anxiety knotted them together, creating a rather cumbersome lump.

No matter how scared she was, she needed to talk. After forcing down a swallow, Kagome decided to start her story a little earlier than the incident to ease herself into admitting her guilt.

"I was about to close the store, my last customer was a little weird and I was ready to go home." Her eyes stared at the dull steel of the table beneath her hands.

"Weird how?"

She sighed. "Um, a lady who I think was an actress, started reciting some lines to me and called me by a different name."

"What name?"

Outside the door, Bokuseno's yell was muffled. "Hey! Stay seated, you can't go in there to save your girlfriend."

Kagome looked to the door, eyes focusing on the knob and anticipating its turn and the reveal of Inuyasha. But she was interrupted because Totosai snapped his fingers repeatedly near her face.

"Look at me, not at the door, not at the table. I need you to talk to me." Totosai brought his hand down deliberately to press his index finger into the table.

Kagome met his scary eyes and nodded. "Okay. Um. She called me Kagome, and that _is_ my name, but she also called me Higurashi, even though my name is Yukino."

"I said sit down, I don't want to have to tell you again!" Bokuseno's voice sounded through the cracks of the door. She flinched and Totosai decided to encourage her by leaning forward a little and keeping her gaze.

"Keep going. Tell me what she looked like."

"Uh. She was wearing a suit. Long black hair and bangs. Sunglasses."

"A very weird customer to have. Did she buy anything?"

"Uh, no."

Totosai's eyes narrowed as his mind drifted into whatever train of thought was taking over. "Forget her right now. We'll need to find her later if you want any semblance of an alibi." Kagome's eyes shut tightly for a second. "What else happened?"

"I saw two guys fiddling with the lock on my door. I went to stop them, and they just attacked me…" She paused. Her hands fidgeted a bit on the table and the nervous sweat on her palms allowed them to glide against the surface of the table. It was a nasty sensation, all the moisture on her hand reminded her of blood. "I have a bat behind the register. Um. Just in case."

The officer nodded.

"They came in and I didn't know what to do. They were threatening me and I um…I don't know how to explain what happened. Something just came over me and...now...now they're dead." She flipped her hands over and her knuckles rested against the slightly damp spot on the table. She spread her fingers experimentally, wondering about how, with her hands, not too long ago…

Her heart beat faster.

"_You didn't know what happened?_ At any moment you didn't realize what you were doing to those people would have ended their lives?"

The knot was back. Kagome couldn't talk anymore, her eyes welled up a little. The man simply confirmed her own feelings.

"HEY!"

Inuyasha had shoved himself against the door, jarring the crappy knob and allowing him entrance. "It was self defense!"

Totosai moved immediately to grab Inuyasha. "Where's Bokuseno? I'm about to throw you in a cell!" In response, Inuyasha just maneuvered outside of his reach and into the opposite corner of the room. Kagome, frightened for him, stared at Inuyasha's angry expression.

"Those guys were fucking threatening to kill her. She won't tell you that she had a gun pointed at her because she's _traumatized_, asshole."

He was embellishing. She didn't even get to really tell him anything yet. But, he wasn't wrong, Renkotsu had a gun directed at her. Another but: she's the one who eventually pulled the trigger.

Bokuseno came running over with a bloody lip, which she assumed was a gift from Inuyasha. Both men cornered him and grabbed him by both arms. Kagome shot up in the middle of the commotion, unsure what to do but not wanting to be a sitting duck.

Both police officers dragged Inuyasha to a cell and Kagome followed. Neither man told her to stay put, so she went with them to make sure Inuyasha wouldn't get hurt. His handcuffs were opened by Bokuseno.

"Get in there," Totosai grunted at Inuyasha and turned around once he was where he needed to be. When he saw Kagome, he barked, "What are you doing here? You were not supposed to leave the room!"

She felt scared for a second, but she straightened her stance and replied, "You didn't tell me to stay."

"I didn't think I had to," he responded spitefully, "I thought you had sense."

She wilted.

"Get in the cell. Idiots stay together." She was ushered in and the door was locked behind her.

The cops mumbled to each other for a few moments before Bokuseno addressed them. "You're probably going to be in there the whole night, so get comfortable. Young lady, we'll have a psychiatrist come to speak with you tomorrow."

She nodded. _Psychiatrist._

They walked away and Kagome sat on the bench next to her boyfriend. She felt stretched thin. She was sure she looked haggard. Inuyasha appeared a little ruffled, but still looked as attractive as he always did. Her hands cupped his face and she kissed his cheek, happy he was safe. But she was also mad at him and she pulled away slightly, removing her hands from his face but keeping them between them.

"You're the worst." She huffed as her hands pushed against his chest weakly, "You didn't need to break down the door." It was like he never thought before he acted!

"No, you're the fuckin' worst," his hand grabbed her wrist. "You didn't have to tell them anything. We could get a lawyer."

"But I don't think-"

"Kagome. _Please_. For me, try to save your damn skin. Just for me." His eyes looked so sincere and it made her heart clench.

It came back to the question of her deserving it. She still thought she didn't.

"Protecting you..." he pulled her into a hug. "I know you think I'm messing shit up and you want to give yourself in and all that crap...but I can't fuckin' stand that those men got the chance to threaten you and I wasn't there to help."

Kagome sighed and hugged him back, tearing up again. "Oh, Inuyasha...things are going to get ugly…"

As if Kagome was asking for trouble, there were sounds of a scuffle behind the door where Bokuseno and Totosai left into. She jumped, standing up and walking to the bars that held them in.

"Do you think they're okay?"

"Keh," She could practically hear his arms crossing in disdain. "I'm sure they're fine." He didn't care.

Kagome only heard movements, but nothing substantial. Inuyasha seemed to have better ears than she did, because he stood up and walked over to the bars with a curious look on his face soon after his dismissal. He must have heard something suspicious.

"Kagome, step back." He didn't look her in the eye and continued to stare at the door.

"What happened?" Because she hesitated, he grabbed her shoulder and tried to push her behind him. She resisted, demanding an explanation with her hardened demeanor.

"Stay behind me." She gave in reluctantly, not understanding his reasons but willing to trust him blindly.

"Inuyasha, talk to me!" She whisper-yelled at the same time as a bullet was shot in the other room.

Kagome's hands immediately shot up and gripped his biceps. She hid between his shoulderblades.

She won't ask questions anymore.

"Totosai!" Bokuseno yelled in the other room. "Get away from-" another shot was fired. A thump.

"Fuck," Kagome whined.

The knob jiggled. Kagome peeked to see what was going on, and she saw the knob was turned slightly, experimentally. It was to see if they needed to break the door down.

Whoever it was, they came in easily.

"Heeeeeeey," one mad slurred when he strolled in. Kagome hid behind Inuyasha again. "Is there uh...some Kagome Higurashi here?"

Inuyasha said nothing.

"Now, don't glare at me," the mystery man stepped over. "You don't need to answer my question, I guess." A finger skimmed her cuticles. Her hand flinched back. "There's a very small hand there!"

Inuyasha stepped back and moved her with him. "Get away, asshole."

Since she had already been noticed, she peeked out again to see who it was. His long black hair was in a braid and she could see a fading purple tattoo on his forehead. It looked like some variation of a starburst.

"Kagome! You look just like your pictures, you know? Very pretty." She glared at his grin. "The name's Bankotsu, by the way. I'm here to get rid of you."

"You sent those guys after me?" She advanced towards him angrily, but Inuyasha stopped her from getting closer than she'd like because he grabbed her arm. _This man_, she thought, _This man is the reason I've become a murderer._

"No, my brothers were ordered there," he casually unlocked the gate, "I figure you killed them. A shame."

He opened the door and opened his arms wide, "Come after me."

She was going to fight again? She didn't want to.

"Bankotsu!" A man jumped in merrily. "I'm here to help!"

"Jakotsu, I found our target." He gestured at Kagome, and Inuyasha growled.

"And who's the handsome man?"

Bankotsu shrugged. "Collateral damage."

Kagome's hands balled into fists. "We're right here, you know!"

Bankotsu slipped forward and grabbed her by the throat. "You won't be, in a second."

Her hands shot up to dig into the man's strong fingers. Her vision was going black, shadowy blots marring the edges of her sight while she fought for fresh air to enter her lungs.

Inuyasha barreled into Bankotsu's side, knocking Kagome out of his grip. She stared at the ceiling and coughed violently and tried to breathe in, but her throat felt bruised. Stray tears leaked from the corners of her eyes involuntarily.

"F-fuck," she wheezed.

Beside her, Inuyasha and Bankotsu were rolling around and fighting. She was well aware of her boyfriend's tendency to act without thinking and the power behind one of his punches. He was stupidly strong.

It appeared that Bankotsu was just quicker on the defense, as Inuyasha only got two real blows in before he hit him square in the jaw and kneed his stomach, groaning as he did. "You are _not_ my damn problem. Jakotsu, get 'em for me."

"With pleasure," Jakotsu agreed readily and picked up the slightly incapacitated Inuyasha by his collar and dragged him to the other room.

"S'just you and me, doll face." His expression was confident even though blood was smeared on the edge of his mouth. Both of them were still on the floor, rolled on their sides to face each other. Everything about this made her angry; she was lying down with this man, her neck aching, Inuyasha was fighting far away from her and apparently there was a person out there looking to end her life.

_For me, try to save your damn skin. Just for me._ Inuyasha's plea echoed in her mind.

Kagome, starting to accept the fact that she's going to fight for her life and fight _hard_, kicked forward, aiming to hit him _somewhere_ at least. Bankotsu grabbed her leg by the calf and pulled her close. He grabbed a hold of her jaw with his opposite hand and brought her face near his. She was horrified.

"I'm just trying to be nice to you before it all goes to shit, baby." His bloody lip skimmed her own.

She jostled her leg, trying to get free but to no avail. She decided to sit up and he let go of her jaw easily. "Couldn't be nice to my boyfriend?"

Bankotsu simply shrugged. "I don't do well with competition."

Her eyes narrowed and she kicked her leg out hard enough to finally free herself from him. "And I'm not competition?"

"Not remotely." he finally sat up on his elbow.

Not only was he trying to kill her, but he thought she was a doormat!

Kagome recalled the perfectly functioning jail cell behind her. She sneered and glared into his eyes. "Fight me."

"No problem." He grinned.

She finally stood up, fists poised up at the entrance of the cell. Bankotsu walked forward and fumbled with something under his shirt.

He pulled out a pistol, twirling it on his finger. "I'll let you try and maneuver away from me, but I'm still going to shoot you in the end."

She paused, hesitating before she lied. "Okay."

"I know you don't believe it," he mistook her pause, "but I'll make sure it's not too brutal."

"Stop being condescending," she growled. He walked towards her and she took two steps back, the pair of them making it into the cell. She turned around and he turned with her. Her back was now to the exit, just like she wanted.

"Sorry," Bankotsu laughed. "I'm told I'm pretty cocky."

"An understatement," Kagome pushed his shoulders and made him stumble back. "I want you to regret it."

He rolled his eyes and grabbed her by the hair and she yelped. He nestled the gun in her temple and she went stock still.

"Will I, sweetheart? I think not." Not wanting to provoke him further, Kagome stayed silent and looked him in his eyes, willing him to just disintegrate in front of her.

_How can I get out of this?_

_Wait_, she thought back to the promising click of the revolver Renkotsu aimed at her. It was a precursor to death, and Bankotsu...

He hadn't cocked the gun. It was an empty threat. She had leverage. If anything, she can get out of his hold. She was small and he was big, all hulk and probably more clumsy compared to how fast she could be if she tried.

Kagome's previously limp arms went up to his neck and squeezed. _Payback_, she thought. Her thumbs mercilessly pressed against his trachea and Bankotsu coughed terribly as drool spilled over his lip. The barrel of the gun shifted slightly, the cool metal scraping against Kagome's head and making her wince. Before it became a standstill, Bankotsu charged forward and pressed Kagome against the wall, allowing the unforgiving concrete slam into her skull and shake up her brain.

"Gods," she wriggled. "You're not making this easy."

He actually smiled a little, even with his face blotchy and red.

His neck was too thick. Bankotsu was right, her hands were actually a little too small to do major damage in the already weakened state she was in. She tried to prick her relatively sharp nails into his skin. His ability to resist her only served to make her more angry, as there were definite marks on her neck where his own fingers had been.

Now knowing that there was someone conspiring against her, previous reservations were pushed to the back of her mind. Kagome was going to embrace her newfound skills.

Using the neck in her hands and the solid wall behind her back as leverage, Kagome shoved her body forward and used her knee to kick Bankotsu straight in the balls.

He tore away from her within the same second, falling to the floor in a crouched position. The gun, which he had forgotten in favor of clutching his manhood, had fallen near his knee. She quickly kicked it away from him and out of the cell. He tried to reach for it but it slid away too fast.

Without a second thought, Kagome stepped out of the cell and slammed its gate shut.

"Bitch," Bankotsu mumbled. "That was a dirty move."

She kneeled down and picked up the gun. "I guess I'm competition now, aren't I?"

He jumped up and clutched the cell bars, rattling them on their hinges. "You're gonna fucking die!"

"Everyone is going to die," she taunted, smiling. "But I'm not dying today, you damn jerk."

She put the gun in her back pocket and ran out while Bankotsu screamed and tried to reach out to her through the bars. As a final 'fuck you,' she closed the door behind her to muffle his pleas.

Totosai's body was suddenly at her feet and she gasped. His eyes were still open in the shocked expression he had when he died. There were two points where the bullets hit him in the heart, trickles of blood seeping from the wounds.

Kagome closed her eyes and stepped over the corpse. She had to find Inuyasha.

Walking forward, she passed Bokuseno (she closed her eyes this time) and saw the handcuffs near his body. She picked it up and put it in her pocket as well.

"Let's make you bleed," she heard up ahead of her. "I love blood."

Kagome slowed her stride and tried not to make much noise. In the far corner of the room she stepped into, she saw Jakotsu sitting on Inuyasha's stomach and dragging a knife down his chest. In her line of vision, he hadn't pressed the knife in far enough to puncture.

_How dare he_, Kagome thought. Inuyasha was breathing heavily, so they must have recently found themselves in that position. He craned his neck and saw her, not giving Jakotsu any indication. Her boyfriend grabbed Jakotsu's forearms and pushed them up and away, flinging him entirely off his body in one fell swoop. Jakotsu tried to scramble into the far corner of the room, but Inuyasha stepped on the man's back two times, once to push him down and subdue his movements and twice to keep him from moving.

"Kagome," Inuyasha coughed, wiping at his mouth. "We need to pin this guy down or some shit."

She felt around in her pocket and found the cuffs. She held them out to him and jingled them.

Near where Jakotsu had fallen was the bench where Inuyasha was ordered to sit at. Kagome grabbed his wrist unceremoniously and pulled him near to the arm of the seat. To stop any sort of shenanigans, Inuyasha grabbed the man's feet and held them in the air.

"Ugh," Jakotsu groaned. "I don't like you very much."

"That's okay," Kagome shrugged. She attached one side of the handcuffs to Jakotsu and the other onto the firmly set bench arm that was stuck to the ground with a bolt. "I don't like you either. You tried to kill my boyfriend."

"Oh shit, you're taken?" He looked to Inuyasha. "No wonder you weren't responding to my advances."

Her brows furrowed and she turned to Inuyasha herself. The extremely confused expression on his face made it extremely hard for her not to snort and laugh. Remembering the situation, she found her brain and changed the subject instead.

"Who's coming for me?" She asked firmly.

Jakotsu leaned hopelessly against the bench. "Our boss, Naraku. He's the worst. He's going to be so mean to us for not killing you now. Maybe the rest will be able to do the job."

"The _rest_?" Inuyasha yelled in disbelief.

"Naraku…" she said to herself, hoping to conjure any memory of this man.

"Oh, wait!" Her captive began to fiddle in the pockets of his black jeans, pulling out a grenade. "Thanks, Ginkotsu!"

Kagome stood up without hesitation and stepped away.

"We'll just fuckin' leave," Inuyasha growled, pulling on Kagome's arm. "Bye, you dick."

She was walking backward as Inuyasha led her. Jakotsu removed the pin from the explosive with his teeth and yelled.

"Catch!"

She reflexively caught it with her free arm.

"What the fuck!" Inuyasha yelled.

She panicked and as he yanked her away she threw it back at a grinning Jakotsu. She had been picked up and Inuyasha ran from the building as fast as he could.

It blew up within seconds.

The pair of them fell forward in the blast, Inuyasha swiftly covering her in his arms while they tumbled, rolling. Bankotsu's gun dug into the flesh of her back and she winced.

She grabbed his face and tried to take a good look at him several seconds later. His expression was livid.

"I'm going to say it before you do," she heaved her breaths, "that was dumb."

"Hell yeah that was fucking dumb! Why would you catch it?!"

"I don't know," she looked down. "I'm sorry."

He hugged her tightly, putting his head in her neck and breathing in the smell of her. She did the same, allowing the shape and feel of him to calm her frazzled nerves.

"This is insane," she groaned, "Why does someone want to kill me!"

"I-I don't know, Kagome." Inuyasha was unusually hesitant in his response, but she chalked it up to the toiling wreckage adjacent to them. "But we're in this together."

"I want to hide," she whispers. "We need to hide. I want to think."

For once, he didn't seem to want to argue with her for the most dangerous route, which would have been direct confrontation with whoever this Naraku person was. He just nodded.

Inuyasha's arms are running up and down her back in a soothing gesture, his mind seemingly elsewhere. His finger nudged against the gun in her pocket. Curiously, he paused, hand sliding down to the edge of her pocket and gripping the pistol there. He slid the weapon out. They sat up and he held it between them.

"Beretta," he mumbles. "This is some expensive shit."

She looked at the gun and was surprised that she recognized it. The branding was somehow familiar to her. She could even tell what bullets needed to be purchased for it. In fact, if necessary, she could craft them herself from gunpowder.

For some reason, she could name all kinds of bullets now, even other weapons. Her head was pulsing now, threatening a horrible migraine. It pinpricked at her browbone and she pinched the bridge of her nose to quell the pounding.

Inuyasha's arm wraps around her, assisting her as they stood up together. "We can walk home from here, get you your meds."

She nodded and leaned into his chest. Her vision was blurring, so she let him lead her home as the night grew darker.

With everything that has happened in the last four hours, walking into their quiet alley-like neighborhood is unsettling. As Inuyasha unlocked the door for them, Kagome suspected a man would pop out and slit his throat. She squeezes his arm tightly, probably hard enough to leave marks. He says nothing.

The door opens with a creak, which is typical. The high-pitched noise goes straight to her throbbing brain. The apartment is in the same state of disarray as it was when the pair of them rolled out of bed that very morning.

She released him in favor of scouting the area. After assuring herself that everything was okay, she stood in the middle of the house and placed a hand on her head. If her hand was on her forehead, it wouldn't fall off. He came quickly to her, finding a seat for her to sit down on.

"I'll grab your medicine. We need to get out of here as soon as possible."

She nodded in affirmation, letting her head loll back against the chair's support. Inuyasha's quick movements diluted her thoughts. The thumping in her head synced with her heartbeat. She still didn't dare close her eyes for too long.

A glass of water sloshed in front of her vision. She blinked at it, noting Inuyasha's fingers curled around the cup. His knuckles were covered in blood. Kagome squinted.

"Okay," she grabbed the glass from him and held out her other hand to take the medication. He dropped the pill into her palm and she placed it into her mouth. She chugged the whole glass.

"Ah," she exhaled when she was finished drinking. It usually takes about 30 minutes or so for the medicine to kick in, so the waiting game began.

"Let's go," Inuyasha helped her up again. Keys jingled in his fist, and they walked to the car.

Once they were sitting in the vehicle, Kagome felt a rush of nervousness that always hit her. Would they be leaving Tokyo? No, they hadn't talked about that. But it seemed like the smartest thing.

"I'll drive around until we figure out where we're gonna go." She nodded and thought about the beretta she stole from Bankotsu, who was dead now. It was shoved into the glove compartment when they got in. Her hand skimmed the handle that kept it closed, imagining opening it.

"Kagome?"

She turned to Inuyasha. "Yeah?"

"You okay?" His concern lifted her spirits some, she knew he was afraid she'd cry again. There were no tears left, and it was time for self-preservation. She held in her chuckle at his worried expression.

"As okay as I can be. I think my mind has given up on me." Kagome noted the tension that appeared in his arms. He clutched the driving wheel in what seemed like anger.

But his voice was normal.

"Where are we going," he exhaled. "Maybe we should leave."

"Um...yes. I think so too." It was showtime. Once again, she and Inuyasha ask the question: can she leave Tokyo?

Her migraine pill had enough time to kick in, and she felt much better than before. It'd be a little longer until it was all gone, but she was satisfied.

"I'll take the highway and drive out," He turned the car around and started driving in another direction.

She didn't object, but she wanted to. They were trying to leave town for the umpteenth time and she felt the rising dread in her that always came. Kagome decided to swallow it, force it deep down…

They drove for 30 minutes in complete silence.

As they were about to pass on from Tokyo to Yokohama, Kagome's stomach fluttered nervously and she automatically yelped.

"Wait!"

Inuyasha halted the car abruptly, which ended up swinging her body forward in her seat, his hand reaching out to stop her from fully launching. Her hands came up to hold his forearm.

He didn't even ask her. He already knew. "I _know_ this is hard. I've seen it."

She pressed her body into the hard planes of the seat, grounding herself. "I'm sorry."

He took her hand in his. "We can do this. It's life or death."

"_I know_," She whined, covering her eyes with her free hand and taking a deep breath. She counted to five, but she knew it didn't really relax her. She knew her hands were trembling and her chest was heaving erratically.

"Please."

His plea squeezed her heart pathetically; skimming across the lining of her empty stomach and perpetuating her consistent nausea since she shot Suikotsu. She wanted to do everything for Inuyasha. She hoped to give him all that she had but in the end she always turned up with nothing.

"I can't," she whispered tightly.

His silence plugged up her throat and dried her eyes. She removed the hand from her face and stared damningly at the windshield. She wouldn't look at him, she knew the look well. It wasn't anger, it was disappointment, maybe laced with a little pity. There may be frustration there this time.

Her hands curled into weak fists.

"We'll go to the neighborhood, maybe see Jinenji." The man who lived in the adjoining house to theirs was unnaturally kind. She was weary of taking advantage of his sweetness. Kagome almost hoped he wasn't home.

Inuyasha turned the car back around and kept driving. He took a winding route, probably utilizing the longer amount of travel time to simmer down. Kagome pulled the lever at the side of her and made her seat lean all the way back.

After about a 10 minute ride, the car jolted. She turned her head to look at his stern expression. He was surveying the area, turning his head minutely to catch a noise.

"What happened?" she whispered.

"Someone, behind us. I think. I don't know." Kagome sat up at this point. His eyes were narrowed and his mouth was in a frown.

She openly turned around and looked at the suspicious car behind them. The windows were tinted and the car was black. It would have been unrecognizable without its gleaming white headlights.

Inuyasha tapped on her shoulder gently. She met his eyes and he whispered. "Get out the car. I'll be behind you."

She nodded and pulled the knob, but he stopped her. "Grab the gun."

Shakily, she grabbed the handle for the glove compartment and opened it. The beretta shifted and bumped against the hard plastic of the cover. She picked it up by the grip of it, the weight of the weapon in her hands slumping her wrist backwards momentarily.

Kagome stepped out and looked around nervously. Inuyasha stepped out of the driver's seat with determination, kneeling down near his seat and moving his hand under it. She tilted her head, trying to get a look at what he was doing.

From underneath the innocent, inconspicuous car seat, Inuyasha pulled out an automatic machine gun. It was compact enough to fit snugly inside their car. She was unnerved. _Where did he get that?_

Kagome drove their car tons of times. She's dropped her keys under that seat and felt around beneath it. Where was the fucking _machine gun_?

"How-" She started, but then a bullet whizzed past her face.

"So sorry about that," a stocky man commented. "I meant to hit your skull. I won't get it wrong this time."

"Down!"

She crouched immediately, walking over to the front of their car and hiding. Kagome adjusted her grip on her weapon so that she was poised and ready.

"Mukotsu, you scared the girl off!" A loud voice yelled.

"It's fine, Kyokotsu. Her little boyfriend is around so we can kill him first."

Inuyasha immediately crouched down. "Kagome, we're going to run."

"Strategize all you want, we'll wait!"

She turned to him with a gulp, but nodded nonetheless.

"You go first and I'll be right behind you. I promise."

"You're not tricking me!" she whispered angrily, "I'm not leaving you if we don't go together."

His hand comes up over her back, cupping her neck tenderly as he moves in to kiss her. Instinctively, she leans into it, before she forces herself to pull away. Once she did, Inuyasha shot up and ran away from her.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome yelled raggedly, jumping from the hiding place and going in the same direction.

The stockier one rushed forward, bumping his chest with hers and making her stumble back. At his feet was a portable tank.

That got her to aiming her gun haphazardly, turning off the safety before she did. Looking frantically for Inuyasha, she saw that he was leading the other away from the fray.

Mukotsu pulled a gas mask over his head and turned the knob on his tank. In one of his hands he held a mask that was meant for her face. The gas steamed out and tickled her nostrils.

"If I let enough of it leak out I won't even need to put it on you, didn't you know?"

Kagome covered her nose and mouth with the sleeve of Inuyasha's suit jacket. It must have looked ridiculous, one half of her body cowering away while the other attempted to aim. She steps into his space, hoping to intimidate him, but he snapped forward and made her yelp. In response, Kagome took the blunt edge of her gun and slammed it down into the center of Mukotsu's skull.

He crumpled, holding his hands to his head. The large metal cylinder that was in his hand rested beside him. Kagome reached down and grabbed it, turning off the streaming gas and pushing it out of reach for either of them.

A little more poison got into her nostrils and she coughed and sniffled. It's taste settled on her tongue and made her gag. She was trying to catch her breath and take in her surroundings, but it was overwhelming. Adjacent to her, she could hear Mukotsu start to get on his feet.

Suddenly, gunshots fired and she crouched down in fetal position. Beside her, she watched as a bullet went straight into Mukotsu's fleshy cheek. Immediately she closed her eyes and shivered while one, two, three more popped in the air and squelched into the man's flesh.

"You got Mukotsu in the fucking face, you goddamned dog!" Kagome finally looked up and found Inuyasha standing in front of the man who was yelling at him.

_What an arbitrary insult, _she thought.

"And you're next, you piece of shit." Kyokotsu towered over Inuyasha. This man appeared to be seven feet tall.

Inuyasha aimed his weapon upward, ready to shoot and kill. Kyokotsu snarled and flexed his bulging muscles, which he flaunted in the cold fall air. "Come get me."

Kyokotsu reached for the gun in Inuyasha's grip, but she stood up and automatically aimed for the extended hand. Her bullet passed right through his thumb, blowing the stubby appendage off.

Kyokotsu slowly turned his head to her. "Smart, now I can't hold shit. Good thing I have two!" His other hand waved up.

Her boyfriend walked backward with a calculating expression. He gestured for her to follow his motions and she complied.

As they walked to the edge of the block near them, Kyokotsu stood still. Much like his allies, he enjoyed the chase. Kagome recognized this thirst for a game, it seemed like a sick desire for carnage tied in with an innate desire for company.

The looming man leaned down and skimmed his calf. His hand slipped under the leg of his jeans and Kagome examined her options.

It could be another gun. It could be an explosive. It could be a taser...what else?

Kyokotsu pulled out a sharp serrated knife. He twirled it between his fingers with his uninjured hand. "Guns are too precise."

Kagome readied her beretta.

He flung the first knife and did her best to dodge it. It grazed the flesh of her thigh and left a gnarly slice in her leg. Reflexively, she fired.

"Bastard," Inuyasha grumbled. Kyokotsu snickered and dug out another knife. He threw it near Inuyasha's neck without success. Inuyasha somehow was able to catch it with his hand. His palm suffered, releasing droplets of blood that dribbled onto what was previously pristine, freshly laid concrete.

He let the knife clatter on the asphalt in favor of shooting a bullet straight into Kyokotsu's shin. The man in question doubled over, yelling at the pain. No longer a towering force anymore, Inuyasha easily walked up to the cowering man and shot him in the other leg, right in the kneecap that was kissing the ground.

Inuyasha took hold of Kyokotsu's fat head and snapped his neck without trouble.

Kagome stood there in shock. The man's eyes were still open, he looked frozen in time. Like Totosai. His neck had been twisted in a gruesome way and soon she was cringing, hunching her shoulders to hide herself.

"Inuyasha-" she began. Her hand was placing pressure on her open wound as well, batting at the dripping blood with a nicely pressed sleeve of some kind of polyester blend.

"We gotta get in the car, quickly!"

She hesitates only for a second, disoriented. _Inuyasha has killed someone in front of me._

He jogged over to the car and Kagome did as well, trying to ignore her throbbing leg. After a few seconds a certain numbness set into her that ceased her body's pest-like aching. She braced herself for to deal with the pain for awhile. The night had been long, and would probably stretch on for the foreseeable future until they could deem themselves safe.

They settled in their seats with their respective weapons in their laps. _How strange,_ Kagome ponders. It surprised her that Inuyasha even owned a gun in the first place.

He drove forward and down a winding road, trying to find a semblance of privacy. She needed to talk to him. Her entire image of him was officially skewed. Sure, they had been together for five years and she wasn't unaware of his aggressive nature, but he'd never hurt an innocent person. She thinks, at least.

"Inuyasha," she asserted. "When did you buy that gun?"

His eyes shot to hers as he drove, but he quickly brought his gaze back to the road in front of him. "I've had it for a while, I don't know…"

"You don't know?"

"I never found a chance—"

"This isn't a random scarf in your closet. _Why is there a gun underneath our car seat_?"

"I just-"

"How did you know how to fire it so well? How was your aim so steady?" Her voice was borderline frantic, questions coming from her mouth like the bullets she's heard all night.

"Maybe it was simply instinct—" he evaded.

"You snapped his neck like you've done it before." Her voice trailed into an accusatory whisper.

"I fucking have!" Kagome flinched and leaned against the car door, putting distance between them.

Inuyasha stopped the car abruptly for the millionth time that night. "Kagome, we need to talk, now."

His eyes nervously met her own and she knew he didn't like what he saw. She felt angry, even hurt that she'd been with this man for so long and she didn't know this entirely different side of him.

But then she thought deeper.

"Inuyasha, why do I know how to aim?"

He just stared at her.

"This is crazy," her voice cracked. "Tell me something that makes sense, Inuyasha. Please."

His hand came up and held her cheek, thumb grazing the planes on the side of her face.

"I...I used to work for the government." _What? _Her mouth gaped.

If the situation were different, she may have laughed at the idea of Inuyasha meticulously obeying such a formidable authority.

"Did I work there too?" Kagome hated that she knew nothing. Her past was a sore spot, the mysteriousness only making her anxious. The idea of doing anything before the age of nineteen would be a blessing for her to learn about...even if muscle memory turned her into a killer.

"I still have some stuff from when I worked under them, they let me keep the weapons…" Military grade weapons. That didn't make sense!

"What about me?!" She screamed in desperation, jerking his hand from his face.

"Before I ended work." He stuttered.

"You met me before you left?" Her voice was stern.

"Yes."

"So I worked with you…and you didn't tell me."

"No...uh, not exactly."

Kagome's head panged. She flopped her body forward and concentrated on banishing the weak thumping that rattled her brain.

"You were in this program and I was...kind of your caretaker," he floundered for the right words. "...it didn't work."

So she was right all along, she was broken. Kagome curled in on herself further.

"I was supposed to help you settle down in Tokyo…"

"So everything was just a job for you? All this time and it's just been some elaborate lie? You're _stationed _with me?"

"No! No, Kagome. Not everything is a lie." She knows his face. She's seen him weary, she's seen him angry, she's seen him dazed. But he looks scared now, of her. His expression is wretched, desperate eyes and a frowning mouth. She pushed the urge she felt to console him.

The earliest memory she can recall without going into a dizzy spell was her first encounter with Inuyasha. From then on, it had always been him. Going on her first date with him. Holding his hand. Kissing him for the first time. Feeling his face in her neck, around her body, inside her mind. The memory of having sex with him for the first time is as clear as day. The words he whispered in her ear from behind echoed through her cells,

"_You're everything."_

The tears came back to her in waves. Searing liquid flushed from her eyelids and down her ruddy cheeks. _Oh_, her mind whimpered, _I am a fool._

"Kagome…" His voice was patient, hopeful. He placed a hand on her shoulder and tried to calm her as he usually did. "Talk to me, please."

"You love me," she mumbled. "At least I think you do. I don't know. I can't—I can't believe that you're around me because of your own free will. There's no way."

He pulled the fabric of her shirt into a fist. She lifted her head up without warning but he did not release his hold or move back. "Please," he whispered, his voice catching.

"I love you," she mumbled.

"Kagome," his voice grew smaller.

"I've hated myself for so long," she tore herself from his weak grasp, "I thought I ruined your life! I loved you so much but I hated myself in return!"

"You didn't—"

"No, I didn't. You didn't tell me about who I am, you _let _me suffer…"

"It would have drove you crazy! It could have killed you!" His hand slammed down on the console. "You've felt your fucking migraines!"

"Get away from me," she whispered harshly. "Get out of this car."

"Kagome."

"Get out of this car. Get out of my fucking life!"

The minute she said it, she regretted it. She didn't want him to leave, no matter how fucked up the situation was, no matter how much she felt like he didn't actually feel a thing for her; the yearning she held for him was inconsolable.

There was no time to think. A car slammed into the side of their vehicle, the sudden impact upon the passenger door flipping the whole thing over on its side.

The adrenaline in her body was pumped to the maximum, her ears ringing loudly. She frantically looked at her surroundings inside the only car she's used for five years.

Her shoulder had been crumpled into the crook of the door that had bent severely and stabbed into her. The sharp edges dug in her skin and she winced while trying to pull herself out from her seat. The seatbelt only made it harder for her and she hissed as she felt new cuts form on her bicep from the struggle of trying to free herself.

Turning to Inuyasha in a panic, she saw that he was slumped over with his eyes closed. He hadn't been wearing any type of seatbelt, of course, so he was tipped in her direction. In the impact, he received a blow to the head that was steadily dripping blood down his cheekbone. Kagome was briefly reminded of Suikotsu's gruesome visage but she shook it away for the immense concern for the man she loved, even if she wasn't sure if he loved her anymore.

Using her meager muscles to push herself off of the stabbing door, Kagome's leg came up and pushed against the dashboard. She never closed the glove department, though, and her foot gracelessly slammed down into the shallow hole and she yelped in surprise.

Summoning her strength again, Kagome pushed herself up so that she was hunched in a ball. Her hand blindly searched for the latch that pulled open the car door, but something stopped her.

Crunching footsteps, and not the tentative type. The firm sound of the thick boot sole hitting the ground sent a shock of fear into Kagome's heart. _Why did I forget it was a fucking _person _that hit us?_

The boots came in to view on the opposite side of the car. Kagome's hand was still searching for the door handle, but slower now. Inuyasha was none the wiser, but Kagome could have sworn his wound was worse a minute ago.

The stranger crouched down. It was Bankotsu.

He smiled a huge, toothy grin. "Hello sweetheart! Did you think I'd die that easily?"

"Idiots never die," she still managed to spit out in an angry huff, trying to uncurl herself so she can escape quickest.

His arm reached out and she jumped, pushing herself back and finally finding the hinge she needed to pull.

What she didn't expect was for him to drag Inuyasha out by his shirt.

"No!" Kagome screamed and lunged forward, but she couldn't be agile in that extremely cramped space.

"Sorry," Bankotsu chuckled darkly. "I'm going to grab him for a quick second."

Everything was quiet. The ringing that was in her ears earlier was replaced with the sound of her heart beating at rapid pace. She heard the click of a gun.

"NO—!"

Five shots without pause. Maniacal laughter served as a background chorus and Kagome was frozen in place.

She was crying again. Inuyasha was dead, and it was all her fault. If she had told him to just drive…

"Bye bye, bitch!" was the last thing she heard before a resounding crash.

_I'm dead, finally…_

The first step in the afterlife and Kagome gets a slap to the face.

"Ow!" she screeched, touching the prickling skin on the side of her cheek and rubbing it in a soothing motion. If she was dead, why did she feel pain?

"Wake up."

She kept her eyes shut defiantly as she let the sting dissipate on the side of her face. Her hand cupped her cheek soothingly.

"I need you conscious, Kagome! Come on!"

She recognized that voice. Her eyes immediately opened. Slumped against some structure inside of a public park, she squinted at her surroundings.

"Who are you?" Kagome hissed as her body registered all its limbs and each wound she's received in the past couple hours.

"Kikyo Higurashi. I pulled you from the wreckage."

"_Higurashi_?!" Kagome screamed and Kikyo's hand came up to quiet her. "Are you the reason I have an entire _infantry _on its way to kill me?"

Kikyo's face dampened and she opened her mouth to speak but quickly shut it again. "Technically, yes."

"Technically!" She shouted in disbelief and Kikyo shushed her again.

"Do you want to call over that forsaken—infantry, you called it?" She sighed sharply and Kagome flinched. "I get that you've had a long night. But, I'm trying to save your life."

"Oh really?" Kagome laughed incredulously, "I wouldn't know, Ms. Higurashi!" She wisened up this time and knew to speak in a harsh whisper.

"Okay—" Kikyo's face remained stern but Kagome could tell she must have been rolling her eyes in her head or something. "You've tried to leave Tokyo more than three times, that's why they're trying to kill you."

"What?"

"Your last name _is _Higurashi. You're my younger sister."

Kagome always thought about her family. In sad moments when Inuyasha was away she thought about what it would be like to spend time with her family. Kikyo had just given her a gift but in that moment it seemed like a lump of coal.

"I-I," she stumbled over her words, "I don't know you."

Kikyo sighed and frowned. "I know. I work for the government."

_Like Inuyasha said_, she thought. Kagome's brows raised in curiosity.

"You volunteered to be a part of a program that was my brain child. A unit of sleeper agents that can be activated with just a few words."

Her head bent in confusion. "Why would I do that?"

A single, beautiful tear trickled down Kikyo's cheek. "Because you believed in me."

Kagome looked down at her battered body. She believed in Kikyo once. Probably in the same way she had believed in Inuyasha, when he was alive, that is.

Inuyasha.

"Who was Inuyasha?" Her voice trembled, admitting her grief in vibrant color. She won't tell Kikyo that she wishes she went with him.

Kikyo sucked her teeth and stopped crouching on the floor in front of Kagome. She plainly sat on the ground, letting the muddy ground of the woods dirty her pressed slacks.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"My operation went south. Every other agent besides you failed tremendously. Everyone was relocated and given an entirely new life. But you kept trying to leave Tokyo, and you were going to be terminated behind my back."

Even though Kagome had only remembered her sister from tonight, she had a gut feeling that this was the first time since childhood that she had ever seen her sister in such an unbecoming position: her knees near her chest and her shoes rimmed with dirt.

"And Inuyasha…?" She whispered hesitantly, wondering about his role.

Kikyo heaved a sigh and put her head between her knees. A whoosh of glossy black hair fluttered around her hunched torso. Her head looked up and her eyes were shining with tears, but her face was stern.

"I know you don't remember me. But I've missed you. And I'm angry at Inuyasha for being able to spend 5 years with you while I had to pretend you didn't exist and you are my flesh and blood."

"Oh." Kagome exhaled, unsure what to say.

"Inuyasha was your assigned handler through the whole process. He was supposed to help set you up here. He was my best friend. I didn't expect him to _date _you—" Kikyo's hands floated up in the air, clutching at nothing. Her mouth was gaping in disbelief.

Kagome tried to ignore the stabbing pain that traveled through her chest.

She sighed. "He said he'd leave in a couple of months like all of the other handlers and their assigned agents. He went AWOL."

Kagome weighed the idea that Inuyasha had stayed with her of his own will in her head. It soothed her, but also made her feel worse. Inuyasha was dead and the last thing she told him was to leave her alone.

"He always thought you were cute but, _this_?" Kikyo hissed and asked the air in front of her. Kagome stares at her blankly.

She couldn't help it anymore. He was dead, gone forever, stayed with her when she couldn't remember her full name. He carried on loving her even when she was locked in Tokyo. She started to cry, folding in on herself and shaking with regret.

Kikyo, surprisingly unaware of Kagome's plight, stood up with her another sigh. "We have to find shelter for now so I can reach my colleagues. Where do you live?"

Kagome's watery eyes followed Kikyo's movements as she stood up. Soon, Kikyo's hand came into view, offering to pull Kagome up.

In a split second, Kagome looked at her open palm and looked for any similarities they shared. Her eyes narrowed as she realized that their hands looked exactly the same.

She let her help her up.

Kagome shuffled for her house key that was shoved in the front pocket of her jeans. Kikyo was waiting calmly, not saying a word but just _looking_. She seemed like a woman of little words, and Kagome felt relieved at the idea. She wasn't sure if she could hold a conversation right now filled with forced chit chat.

Unlocking the door awarded them with the sound of creaking hinges again. She held out her hand to usher her sister in.

_Sister_, Kagome thought curiously as she watched Kikyo stride, _I have a sister._

Kikyo grimaced and that ripped through any tender thoughts that Kagome might have had. "You both live like this?"

She was confused, not sure what to make of that. Looking around her apartment, Kagome felt like it was fine. Cozy. Sprinklings of the both of them with an array of earthy colors and cushy furniture. There might have been a couple clothes scattered about, but…

Kikyo shrugged. "Neither of you were tidy at heart."

She bit her lip and tried not to take the comment too seriously.

Her sister sat down in the chair Kagome did when she had that splitting migraine and looked at her phone. Kagome decided to go into her bedroom and change her clothes; something less bloody.

She was glad Kikyo didn't see the state of this room. It was far worse with an unmade bed and a completely disheveled set of drawers that had both Inuyasha's and her trinkets.

Her eyes scanned the room, thinking about what she might wear. How does one dress for battle when all of their clothes are from Seiyu?

On his side of the bed was the sleep shirt he had on the night before. Bright red, long sleeves. It probably still smelled like him. She immediately walked to it. Pulling off the blazer he put on her with tender care, she set that on the bed neatly. Not caring about her own things, she yanked her top over her head haphazardly.

Reverently, she picked up his shirt. Whatever fabric it was, it transcendently soft. Her hand fisted the sleeve and she let it ground her. She pulled the shirt over her head and she tried to ignore the uncomfortable pull of her injuries as her skin stretched with her movements.

Once she was wearing it, she pulled up the collar of the shirt and inhaled. It _did _smell like him still. The smell washed over her and soothed her just like his blazer did. Or his hug, or his kiss…

"Who the hell is this?!" Kikyo screamed from the other room and Kagome jumped because of it.

Kikyo stopped speaking at such a high decibel and quickly Kagome could only hear intense muffling.

Stepping out of the room curiously, she watched Kikyo's icy demeanor cut wounds into the person on the other line.

"Naraku. I get it. You want to have sex with me. But that doesn't give you clearance to kill my sister."

A short pause. Kikyo's mouth gaped again and she bared her teeth in frustration before she continued on.

"I'll have you know that you are just a little interim bitch boy while they find someone to take my place. Myoga is only entertaining your "band of seven" bullshit in the meantime so you're not busy fucking other shit up—" she grinned before her last words, "which you managed to do anyway by ravaging a small part of Tokyo, you dimwit."

Kagome had never heard her sister speak so much in her life.

Another pause. Kikyo listened facetiously, her knee bouncing at rapid pace portraying her true impatience.

"Oh, who would have thought that a group of psychopathic killers _don't _make good agents? Wow!"

"Who is that?" Kagome said, but not too loudly, hoping that the person on the phone didn't hear.

"I don't mind if you can hear her. I'm not going to feel ashamed for stopping my sister's demise. You can tell Myoga that next time you're sucking on—"

Kikyo was silent, this time a serious expression washing over her face. Kagome walked closer to her and she could make out a few things that was being said.

She heard 'Inuyasha,' she heard 'half demon,' she heard 'tyranny,' and she heard 'orders from the top.'

One thing came up, and it sounded as clear as day. Inuyasha's voice, rasping. "Kikyo, is Kagome okay?"

_Alive! He's alive! _

"Kagome is fine. What you should have done is _called me_ at the first sign of danger! She does not have supernatural healing powers like you!"

"What?" Kagome questioned aloud. Even though she might have been getting answers, she realized she'd be coming away with more questions than she'd expected.

Kikyo pulled the phone from her ear and turned to her sister. She put her hand on the microphone. "I have to yell at him him for this, please wait and I will explain it all."

She didn't let Kikyo continue talking. She swiped the phone and her sister hissed in agitation. Maybe she was used to Kagome not being a good listener.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome said frantically, voice overflowing with relief. "I thought you were dead!"

Over the phone, she heard a puff of air come out of his nose and Kagome knew that he smiled. She felt it in her bones.

Loud static and ruffling overtook the phone's speaker and Kagome pulled it away from her ear with a grimace, angry at the interruption.

"Hello, Ka-go-me." The voice was deep with an aura of cockiness.

"Put him back on the phone," she warned with her teeth clenched.

"Nope! No chance. Sorry not sorry. I will be keeping your half demon pup for now. He's committed treason. And so has your eloquent sister."

"I will find you!" She yelled.

"Oh, honey...I found you first."

Bullets began to fire through her windows and Kikyo flung herself on top of her to get her down on the ground. The phone was tossed out of her hand and it was cracked and in the far corner of the room. Amidst the chaos, she saw the caller ID, the name on display being the same as her sister said:

_Naraku_.

The hailing bullets stopped momentarily and ominous footsteps approached the house.

Kikyo pulled a pistol from her jacket gracefully and gestured for Kagome to follow her to the kitchen counter.

"I will handle this," she mouthed.

Kagome nodded vigorously in return. Kikyo had pulled an even smaller gun from her person and slid it over to Kagome.

"Just in case," she mouthed again.

Kagome looked down and saw the piece. Another beretta. Nano, this time. 3 inch barrel. Holds 6 rounds. 20 ounces unloaded.

She could work with this.

Immediately after that thought Kagome heard her front door get kicked open.

Kikyo swiftly stood up and fired a shot, and Kagome had no doubt that she hit her target. Unfortunately, the man laughed, and made more hulking steps towards them. "Good luck, I'm mostly metal."

Kagome's brows bent together in confusion. She resisted the urge to peek.

"Ginkotsu," Kikyo spoke in a commanding voice. "I am releasing you from this mission."

"Ha!" His laugh sounded slightly mechanic. "I don't care about a stupid mission. This bitch has killed too many of mine. And I do not mind taking you out of my path."

A few seconds went by and no one fired any shots. "Even if you take me down, she will kill you."

"Shut the fuck _up_!" There was a sound of a revving whir and he proceeded to shoot Kikyo in the chest 3 times. Kagome screamed, revealing her location, but she did not care. She crawled over to her sister's prone body and checked for a pulse.

It was there, fluttering faintly against her fingertips, but she found it. Kagome contained her relief and checked if her sister was wearing a vest to protect herself first. She felt the rim of her sister's collar and her fingertips touched a coarse nylon fabric. _ Yes! _

"Hello, cunt." Kagome's head whipped around and Ginkotsu was there, wheezing. He was an absolute abomination, being an amalgamation of poorly soldered metal and irritated red skin. Kagome noted all the parts of him where she could see flesh and only flesh before she got up and scrambled around her kitchen.

"Aw, you're running? Poor soul," his voice complimented by static, Kagome wondered how this man existed. She scanned his body for the shot that her sister took.

There it was, in the flesh of his chest. It was the right shot, but he hadn't gone down.

"Fuck," Kagome said aloud.

"Yes, you're fucked!" He ran forward, bypassing Kikyo's body and lunging himself for Kagome. Much like her other combatants, he proved to be much bigger and clumsier than her. She slipped underneath him and he was empty handed.

On their stove Kagome had her cast iron pan. 'Old reliable,' she called it, and she wondered if it was sturdy enough to crush this man's head.

"Hey, dickface!" Ginkotsu's eyes were angry as he looked at her. Kagome was pleased that she was a pest.

He skidded forward carelessly, the metal encasing one of his legs screeching against the kitchen tile. This time he had smartened up slightly, holding out a gun towards her.

The same second he shot it Kagome held up old reliable and the bullet ricocheted to hit Ginkotsu instead.

Kagome skirted away from him, moving in to her living room to lead him away from Kikyo's body in case she sits up.

If the situation wasn't so deadly, to a untrained eye one might think that her and Ginkotsu were playing a friendly game of cat and mouse.

Ginkotsu lumbered over to her and she saw that there was blood coming from both of his gunshot wounds, which was reassuring: one right in the chest, and the other was lodged in the bridge of flesh on his face that connected metal and skin. As a result, part of his face had become unhinged in that spot.

Kagome held up her beretta and inched backward to put distance from her and the beast that was trying to kill her.

Ginkotsu studies her for a moment. He touches the parts of his body that was assaulted by bullets and gave a sarcastic laugh. "What did that freak Shakespeare say? 'Tis but a scratch."

Approaching behind him silently was Kikyo with a much bigger weapon this time. If there was a machine gun underneath her car seat, there must have been worse in her own home.

"Okay, it's a scratch, then." Kagome shrugged theatrically before crouching down.

Her sister blasted Ginkotsu into bloody bits, chunks of metal flying around and making Kagome hunch down further to protect herself.

After the noise stopped, Kagome looked up and grinned at Kikyo.

"I had a bit of pent up frustration."

"Where did he keep that?" She asked.

"Under some floorboards. Dogs always bury things underground." Kikyo had smirked, a new expression for Kagome to see.

Kagome stood up, remembering her big questions. "Dog. Kyokotsu said that too. Naraku said half-demon."

"Technically he is both of those things, Kagome," Kikyo spoke softly, as if she was expecting an explosive reaction on her part. "You used to know that."

Kagome gulped. _Used to_. She couldn't help but feel jealous of her lucid self from years ago. She seemed much quicker on the uptake.

"Oh," the shame she felt quieted her.

"You will understand when you see him again. Which you will, shortly." Without preamble, Kikyo took out her cellphone and quickly dialed a number that Kagome presumed was Naraku's.

"Ginkotsu is dead. Good job. You have no agents left. So careless of you, Naraku." Kikyo sucked her teeth, head shaking from side to side like a disappointed mother.

Kagome had a feeling this competition has permeated their office relationship for a while.

She watched her sister's brows raise as she listened intently to the man on the other line.

"We will see you there."

Kagome hadn't gotten up from her place on the ground. She looked up at the towering Kikyo, who finally turned her attention to her again.

"They are at Seiyu."

Kagome looked down at Inuyasha's shirt, which was from the bargain bin.

_How appropriate._

Kagome is seated in Kikyo's sleek black car when they pulled up to Seiyu. The parking lot was huge with large tents scattered about. There were also military vans in front of each one, but there was no one else to be seen.

"Holy shit," Kagome exhaled. She was in awe.

"Of course he made a scene," Kikyo sighed as she parked. "Naraku is done for."

Kagome turned to her sister and the two of them exchanged a look. She nodded and Kikyo gave her the hint of a smile, and she felt recharged.

"I'm getting my boyfriend back," she said with determination before she exited the car.

The next five seconds were a blur because she was tackled to the ground. Kikyo gasped loudly, flanking her attacker and fumbling for the gun she had holstered at her ribs.

Kagome looked up and saw Bankotsu again. She hissed. He smiled a bloody smile.

"I am," she propped herself up on her elbows, "tired," ignoring the asphalt grating on the skin there, "of your fucking face!"

Kikyo stepped back and watched, and she briefly met eyes with her sibling.

She head butted him he veered backward, giving her enough open space to slip out from underneath him and push him to the ground. She grabbed his arms and twisted them, holding them behind his back.

This subdued position was another that seemed to come to her effortlessly.

Not going to risk him slithering away, she firmly put her shin on his back. "Where is he."

"Inside," he coughed and laughed. "the store's right there."

"And so you were just coming at me for shits and giggles, then?" She growled, feeling Inuyasha's spirit coursing through her.

"I missed you," he said sarcastically even though he was clearly winded. "We're the same, you know."

Kagome's grip on his wrists faltered slightly, but then tightened back up again. "No we aren't, buddy. You're deranged."

"I do want to kill you," he said in the most measured tone she'd heard from him that entire night. "You're a monstrosity like me. I don't even remember who I was before this."

"Monstrosity," she whispered, grip subconsciously loosening again while she thought about all of the violent deeds she had done in the last six hours.

Bankotsu had manipulated her. He used the opportunity to shove her off of his back and sock her in the face. Blood pooled in her cheeks. She swished it around for a second before she spit it in his smug face.

The lob of spit on his cheekbone didn't bother him. He moved to her hair and grabbed a chunk of hair at her scalp. "If you want to see your stupid boyfriend, you'd better follow me."

Someone approached behind them and put a pistol to Bankotsu's skull.

Kagome felt happy she wasn't an orphan anymore.

"Let go," Kikyo said monotonously. "Let's just walk into the stupid department store."

His hand released and he nonchalantly hugged Kagome's shoulder. She looked at him in disgust.

Kikyo fired her gun without preamble. Kagome jumped, what was left of Bankotsu's head bobbing down and she jerked herself away from his corpse.

Her sister ran over to her trembling form and hugged tightly. "I'm not trying to lose you again."

Kagome's heart squeezed and tears stung her eyes. She hugged her elder sister back, a choked out sob leaving her. The entire night she needed another hug. The pure familiarity that floated between them was wildly comforting, she could imagine their childhood. She knows why she agreed to participate in the experiment in the first place; Kagome always had unequivocal faith in Kikyo. "Me neither."

The more practical one, Kikyo took her hand and they both started walking to the garishly lit Seiyu. It was surreal to see it alive in the middle of the night. Kagome clenched her sister's hand and the gun on her waist.

Kikyo let go of her hand to push open the door. There was no one in sight, just like the parking lot.

"Hello?" Kikyo said loudly, causing an echo. She turned to Kagome and spoke in her normal tone. "It's stupid to reveal ourselves, but I'm not playing his games anymore."

"Who?" Kagome started to ask but the glass doors behind her were shattered with a bullet. Keen and swift, both sisters ducked.

"It's over!" Kikyo yelled, pulling out her second weapon when they stood to their full height again.

"No it isn't," a man came over from behind an aisle, looking worse for wear. Who did that to him?

"Look at you, Naraku," Kikyo commented and lowered her weapons. Naraku flung his own and it slid across the linoleum. Kagome bet he wasted his last bullet on theatrics. "This isn't over?"

"They all left me. I told them I'd take you in, so we'd have a talking to with the boss," he said breathlessly. "I lied. I want to settle this."

Kikyo's eyes narrowed. "You took a little workplace competition and did...this? You destroyed your whole project!"

Naraku grinned. "My psychopathic units are _meant_ to be disposable."

"Keep kidding yourself," Kikyo scoffed. Kagome kept turning her gaze to either one of them, and each time her sister spoke Naraku seemed to tense up all over. "It's unsustainable." His hand was moving behind his back. Did he have another weapon? Kagome's foot stepped forward.

"Did you forget that everyone except your precious little sister mentally imploded, Kikyo?" he sneered, "Talking to me about _sustainable…_"

Kikyo's eyes squeezed closed in hurt. Her shoulders hunched in, seeming to collapse on the weight of all the lives of every person that changed after they participated in her program. Naraku smiled, finally pulling his weapon from behind him.

This time completely conscious of her actions, Kagome ran to take Naraku down. The gun on her clattered on the floor next to them, and so did Naraku's.

"Get off of me, little girl," he hissed. "The grownups are talking."

He was stronger than he looked. He was able to free one of his arms from the weight of her body and he blindly reached for the other weapon. Kagome tried to do the same, but he grabbed it too fast and used the back of his forearm to push her a little further off of him. Kikyo was already in the middle of the scuffle, trying to keep Kagome away from Naraku.

Kikyo grabbed the collar of the deranged man's shirt, about to unleash hell on him until another gunshot was heard.

She screamed, looking at the shocked expression that came over Kikyo's face as her grip loosened. Naraku pushed her over and her body flopped to the side, blood seeping from her stomach this time. Her sister had taken off her vest.

"Goodbye, bitch." He laughed, rearing his head to Kagome.

She squirmed back on the slippery floor, pushing herself against the shelf behind them. A few school supplies fell from their racks and on to the floor behind them.

"I'll kill the both of you," he said, looking like the idea had just come to mind.

"Why?" her voice trembled. Fear had become a familiar friend, Kagome hated being confused. She hated looking at him.

"They were always talking about you."

"They?" she whispered. The government?

Naraku continued with a roll of his eyes. "They wanted to give my position back to her because you actually turned out successful. I convinced them you weren't."

Kagome frowned, ignoring the pain in her face from getting punched. "You're delusional."

"You're her fucking clone. You sound just like _her_." Naraku came over her and shoved the gun in her mouth. Her heart was going to explode.

He pulled it out himself and dragged the slobbery pistol down her face, putting it under her chin. "I hate you."

"I hate you more!" she screamed, and he pushed the barrel of the gun into the dip of her jaw. She leaned her head back to resist it.

Kagome registers the click of his gun. She kept her eyes locked on him, her throat urging her to cry out.

"Inuyasha!"

In a rush, Naraku was grabbed, a strong arm picking him up under the chin. In front of her was...Inuyasha?

He heard her.

His hair was cascading in silver, blood and dirt smudged in his face like her. His eyes were golden. He had _fuzzy ears._

Kagome was panting uncontrollably, feeling safe enough to reach the edge of catatonic now that Inuyasha was around. Her trembling hands clutched her shirt.

"You're a pain in the ass, Naraku." Inuyasha flexed has arm, hiking up Naraku further and impeding his airways again. "I could never fucking stand you."

"Half-demon…" Naraku struggled out, "half-wit."

Inuyasha swiftly shot the cause of the entire mess.

The threat gone, she didn't speak to him. She ran over to her sister, the only person she now knows who is her _blood_, and looked at her body.

Her chest was moving with each of her weak breaths. "K-kikyo?"

Inuyasha gaped at the sight from behind her. "He killed her?!"

There was no answer, but her sister was definitely breathing. Kagome cried in relief. "Gods, she's alive…!"

He leaned in close next to Kagome and sniffed. "I can hardly smell the first day I'm out of my disguise."

She turned to Inuyasha. He looked back at her. The both of them stopped and stared before latching into an embrace.

"Inuyasha, I'm so sorry! I thought you were dead, and I was so mean to you right before..." She cried softly, pushing her face into his armpit to hide.

"No, I'm sorry. I'm really fucking sorry," he pulled her head up towards him and kissed her damp cheeks. "I lied to you. I hated it. You should have been mad, for gods' sake."

She blinked away her tears and kissed him with the desire she felt when she thought she'd never see him again.

"Mm," his chest rumbled in a way she's heard a million times as he kissed her back and squeezed her tight.

They were hit with a tranquilizer and everything turned black.

Kagome blinked her eyes and tried to clear away the fog in her vision. Her brain was heavy—her entire body was sore. Her hands spreading on what was underneath her, it felt like rough sheets.

What she had been sleeping on felt very familiar. Sitting up suddenly and wincing, Kagome looked down and saw a military cot. A wave of memories washed over her. Each time she was ever worn out after a day of training and laid on the subpar bed in exhaustion. Her reading letters from her family by flashlight.

The first time she begged Inuyasha to accompany her.

Her eyes closed tightly. It was beginning to be frustrating that they were constantly becoming separated.

She looked at her surroundings and saw a very empty room. She was wearing exactly what she was wearing that night, she wasn't sure if it was yesterday or even longer by then. She probably could have slept for days. Her mind ran through a list of possible sedatives they used on her.

Lethargically, she fully got herself up. She walked over to the door and touched the knob hesitantly. Kagome turned it, expecting to find it locked. To her surprise, it opened.

What was revealed was a long hallway with various doors. She began to walk down and noticed that each one had the emblem for the Japanese government adorned above its labels.

Her mind briefly flashed back to Totosai's stare when he interrogated her.

Kagome saw a door labeled "CONFERENCE ROOM" and heard Inuyasha's deep vocal register behind it. She took a chance turning the knob again, and it opened just as easily.

When she stepped in, Inuyasha smiled wide when he saw her face. "I heard you coming. Sit next to me."

She smiled back.

* * *

**notes**: Welcome to my first foray into an action story, I hope you guys like the result. Inuyasha and Kagome in this were especially fun to write, they tugged on my heartstrings a bunch and I plan to write more in this universe-most likely some flashbacks to when Kagome knew what was going on. I also highly recommend watching the movie this is based on, _American Ultra, _which I love! Thanks for reading!


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